"Game On! A Discussion about Sports" was a fitting topic for the 2012 Monterey Institute of International Studies' Fall Forum, which annually offers students in the Institute's interpretation programs the opportunity to hone their craft in a professional conference setting.

Hosted each year by the Graduate School of Translation, Interpretation, and Language Education at MIIS, the Fall Forum serves a two-fold purpose, exploring relevant issues of our time while offering second-year students in the Institute's Conference Interpretation and Translation and Interpretation programs the unique opportunity to perform consecutive interpretation in a professional conference setting.

At this year's Fall Forum, three panels focused on the interrelated topics of sports and health; sports and money; and sports, culture and gender. Speakers with diverse professional and personal backgrounds shared their views in their native languages, with consecutive interpretation into English provided for attendees.

"All the interpreters really enjoyed the Forum because it was diversified and well-structured. This is a hands-on experience like no other," says student organizer Anne Koch (MACI ´13). "If you can speak in front of 100 people in Irvine without fainting, you'll be just fine in the real world. We all did a fantastic job and the Forum was a great success."